Anand Beats Carlsen In London

The third round at the London Chess Classic pitted world champion Vishy Anand against his heir apparent, Magnus Carlsen.  After a six-hour fight it was the Tiger from Madras who layed his young opponent low.

Carlsen slipped up with 24...Be4 in a fiendishly complicated middle-game and tried to survive by building a fortress, but a patient Anand found a way to break through.

Leader McShane had to prove his mettle against Kramnik in a long endgame defending rook versus rook and bishop.  The torture finally ceased with stalemate after 139 moves, and McShane keeps his surprise, but deserved, lead at the top of the standings.

The other games were full of effort but rather less dramatic, with Short and Adams fighting out a draw, and Nakamura barely breaking sweat against Howell.  The American was still in his opening preparation at move 32, spending only 10 minutes on the clock to that point, but despite his own time-trouble Howell built a clever fortress to keep Nakamura at bay and survive.

The standings after three rounds:

Anand holds his nerve to beat Carlsen in round three

McShane survives 139 moves against Kramnik to keep the lead

The view of the stage from the audience at Olympia

Photos courtesy of Ray Morris-Hill